I've been boating for thirty years but I've only had my Mastercraft for two years (great boats btw). I have noticed an interesting trend and am just checking to see if anyone else has these issues. Maybe it is me but it seems that Fishermen are getting unusually hostile towards "fancy" ski/wakebaord boats in my area.

I've been on three different lakes and had them go out of there way to make close passes while we had swimmers close to the boat. One actually hit my ski rope while kids were swimming behind the boat, words were exchanged after I chased him into the no wake zone. Several instances at the boat dock claiming that I tied off at the dock too long to go get my car??..two minutes, seriously.. I called the law enforcement office for the area but by the way he responded, I think he fishes with the same group.

Anyway, I haven't done anything different since owning a Mastercraft, I give them plenty of room, I haven't been impolite, and am not rude but seriously, W TF?? Is there a memo I didn't get??

I'd appreciate any insights or thoughts...

mzimme

06-26-2012, 10:52 AM

The fishermen on the lake I run on feel that they own the lake. They sit in the calm water fishing, then just stare me down as we run sets back and forth by the section theyre fishing in. I don't really care. I'm not being unsafe in my distances, and generally I was there first... so they can just fish and get hit with a wake here and there. Our lake is divided basically in half. South of a certain bridge you're able to ski all you want. North of the bridge is like a "habitat reserve" thing, with lots of down trees and that sort of thing. Skiing isn't allowed, so the fisherman have about 3500 acres of lake where they can go be happy.

I haven't seen anyone load or unload their boat faster than I can now that I got the hang of it. I'm usually being pulled out of the water by the time the fishermen are wading in the water to start winching their boat on.

If you're not being disrespectful, then screw 'em. Let them have a bad day, but don't let it ruin yours. (I'd chase down a guy running over a rope with swimmers though, for sure.)

Specter

06-26-2012, 10:55 AM

Have you noticed this trend for the entire 2 years you've owned the boat or just this season? I've only owned my MC for 3 days so I can't comment on how they react to it but all last season was hit or miss with those guys in my Chaparral 216.

I'm courteous to all boaters, regardless of boat type or make, and sometimes it's reciprocated, sometimes it's not. Last season I would estimate that 1 out of every 20 fisherman I encountered were nasty by making close passes, cutting me off, etc. Hopefully you're catching fisherman on their "day off" and it will only last a short while longer.

I agree with chasing someone down that ran over a rope. That's simply uncalled for at any level.

thatsmrmastercraft

06-26-2012, 11:05 AM

Having been into skiing and fishing for longer than I care to calculate, I see a trend towards both fishermen and other ski boats getting closer to me than I like. I think it's worse now that I have had my MC for a few years. My boat seems to attract deckboats and glastrons pulling skiers with the worst form from across the lake to ski as close to me as possible. I suppose they are just there to check out the boat, but they do mess up the water I work hard at keeping clean. As far as the fishermen, ski and wakeboard boats put out larger wakes than most other boats so that may be their complaint. There is plenty of water for everyone......should be a simple thing. But, then again, so is loading a boat and some people make a project out of that too.

broncotw

06-26-2012, 11:15 AM

On the lake I have been skiing on there have been a significant amount of fishing boats and I can honestly say that thus far I have not had any issues.... The fishing boats tend to congregate towards the shoreline, lillypads, and structure (stumps), where I really have no interest in getting close to...
As for someone getting too close and running over my ski rope -- I would have a problem with this and I would definitely confront anyone who did this to me....

haroldbrogers

06-26-2012, 11:25 AM

I don't have a problem with fishermen at all (they seem to be the only ones with any manners), its every other idiot on the lake that cause a problem for us. We wakeboard in the same area every Sat and Sunday morning, running straight lines with tight turns at each end. There is not a day that goes by without some jack@#$ in a pontoon or runabout that has to drive right at us, pass way to close or cut infront. And don't get me started about the jet skiers that want to jump the wake.

gatorguy

06-26-2012, 11:34 AM

I've had fiishermen fishing from the shore yell at me before!?! I can't believe that my skiing could possible mess with someone fishing from the shore. But then again I don't fish, however I was also far from the shoreline.

It's the tubers that tick me off. Saturday I was pulling a friend surfing when a tube cut right in front of us and stopped. I had to cut hard to miss them. I couldn't believe it. I guess that guy had one to any kids, and he was trying to off a couple of them.

madcityskier

06-26-2012, 11:43 AM

I've had fiishermen fishing from the shore yell at me before!?! I can't believe that my skiing could possible mess with someone fishing from the shore. But then again I don't fish, however I was also far from the shoreline.

It's the tubers that tick me off. Saturday I was pulling a friend surfing when a tube cut right in front of us and stopped. I had to cut hard to miss them. I couldn't believe it. I guess that guy had one to any kids, and he was trying to off a couple of them.

When you're traveling at surfing speeds of course you're hard to avoid. Luckily the bassboats all go 80 so they can hurry to shut down right in front of you. Happens here too. We generally try to wave and keep moving if possible. Almost always have kids in the boat and I've been the bad example, try not to do that anymore.

whirli

06-26-2012, 11:45 AM

Funny thing is, i wave at almost everyone i pass, in my boat alot of the fisherman will just stare at me and not wave, if i'm out on my dad's Crestliner a half hour later, i'll drive by the same guys and they will wave at me..... Funny observation.

russlars

06-26-2012, 11:49 AM

We have the same problem with the fishermen at our lake feeling like they own the lake. Despite my efforts to give them plenty of room despite them anchoring right in the middle of the smooth water they routinely flip us off. I have even had them yell at us from their dock. I have found that the best way to deal with them is to just ignore them. It is a public lake and I have just as much right to be on it as them (I figure more so since I own property on the lake and they are mostly drop in for the day types). I just act like they don't exist and if I don't see "the bird" it doesn't bug me and it probably disappoints them that they are not getting a reaction to their rude, redneck behavior.

thatsmrmastercraft

06-26-2012, 12:07 PM

We have the same problem with the fishermen at our lake feeling like they own the lake. Despite my efforts to give them plenty of room despite them anchoring right in the middle of the smooth water they routinely flip us off. I have even had them yell at us from their dock. I have found that the best way to deal with them is to just ignore them. It is a public lake and I have just as much right to be on it as them (I figure more so since I own property on the lake and they are mostly drop in for the day types). I just act like they don't exist and if I don't see "the bird" it doesn't bug me and it probably disappoints them that they are not getting a reaction to their rude, redneck behavior.

So it's just a matter of educating the fishermen who actually owns the lake.:rolleyes::D:D

ttu

06-26-2012, 12:12 PM

Funny thing is, i wave at almost everyone i pass, in my boat alot of the fisherman will just stare at me and not wave, if i'm out on my dad's Crestliner a half hour later, i'll drive by the same guys and they will wave at me..... Funny observation.

wow, i am not the only one that happens to!!!:D:D

wrobins1

06-26-2012, 12:19 PM

The lake I spend most of my time is almost entirely used by fishman. I have little problems with them most of the time, but the starts for the tournaments are extremely dangerous. They line up the entire field and then drop a flag. When the flag drops - all of them fly most of the way up the lake at wide open throttle sometimes 2-3 wide with no care for anyone else. It is almost like they think the D@Mn fish are going to run away if they are not the first one to get there...

thatsmrmastercraft

06-26-2012, 12:21 PM

The lake I spend most of my time is almost entirely used by fishman. I have little problems with them most of the time, but the starts for the tournaments are extremely dangerous. They line up the entire field and then drop a flag. When the flag drops - all of them fly most of the way up the lake at wide open throttle sometimes 2-3 wide with no care for anyone else. It is almost like they think the D@Mn fish are going to run away if they are not the first one to get there...

Clearly the bass-holes in their glitter-rockets are the worst.:D:D

Philscbx

06-26-2012, 12:35 PM

wrobins1 like they think the D@Mn fish are going to run away if they are not the first one to get there...
Clearly the bass-holes in their glitter-rockets are the worst.:D:DIt's been many moons since I was aboard one of those Bass boats.
Next, we're doing MachII across the lake and I have no idea why - Still don't.
Apparently, there's only one 3' diameter spot the fish live - similar to some in traffic, Nascar to the only stop sign.

bobx1

06-26-2012, 12:36 PM

....Maybe it is me but it seems that Fishermen are getting unusually hostile towards "fancy" ski/wakebaord boats in my area....

It is a Pavlovian response to ballast tanks and rap music blasting from tower speakers. Even the land owners on our lake are starting to react this way as well.

Sometimes the reaction is justified, sometimes not.....

There are idiots in all types of boats.

kal_dude

06-26-2012, 12:45 PM

Fu*k rude people!!!!!! we go to the same lake about 99% of the time, so we try and be as respectful as possible, and are always out to have a good time and a fun day..... 19 public parking spots and a single ramp launch are a minor inconvienence that you deal with when you get to spend the whole day on a pristine lake with min. traffic.... the ONLY people who we have EVER had issues with are several of the fishermen, NOT all of them have been rude to us, but ALL of the people who have been rude were fishermen.... not sure why??? if you are like 300 feet away from them they throw their hands up in the air like ***? exchanged words with them on the water several times, at the launch.... just seems to be stupid people who are the issue.... full ballast double up rollers are an appropriate thing to send their way at times ;) and we never are on the lake early in the A.M. we love the warmth of the sun and beautiful sunsets ;)

Philscbx

06-26-2012, 12:49 PM

and rap music blasting from tower speakers..By all rights - land owners have the right to shoot back hearing cRap. :)

snork

06-26-2012, 01:02 PM

Nobody likes a Jackars. Unfortunately it works both ways and yes, rude obnoxious people stay home.
We have a lakehouse in northern Wisc and I as a water enthusiast I hate the ordinance of 10-6 that's no water fun before 10am and after 6pm the water is for fisherman only :rant: :huh:

gatorguy

06-26-2012, 01:06 PM

no water fun before 10am and after 6pm the water is for fisherman only :rant: :huh:

How can you live with that? I am almost never on the water between those hours unless I'm on someone elses boat.

76S&S

06-26-2012, 01:14 PM

Our lake house is close to a mile up a large finger on the lake. When it isn't too busy, we will usually idle out past the fishermen before hammering down and cranking up the music (this almost always gets a friendly wave initiated by the fishermen). Once out on the main lake, I stay in the chanel and try to only pass them going down the lake and then back to the cabin. I do my best not to go back and forth right in front of them. I know that our wake isn't small and I wouldn't enjoy the ride up on shore, so I try to keep my distance where I can.

I enjoy fishing as well, just don't do it as much as we wakeboard.

02ProstarSammyD

06-26-2012, 01:41 PM

Most of our fishermen get back in the less desired areas that I don't mess with anyways. We did have a guy and his son pull into our cove last year, get 20' from us, stare at the girls, and turn around. Super creepers but it was funny as could be. Other than that I just wave and get the occasional finger back. I do late rides after our lake clears out to avoid everyone including them.

Now growing up fishing I can say they have a good reason to be negative half the time. Does that mean they should be flipping people off? No

Huskie05

06-26-2012, 02:53 PM

I grew up fishing, still do, never really off the MasterCraft. We were putting in on a local lake and two very nice middle-aged gentleman (redneck have not showered in a month toothless hobos) said you have a nice boat, I would hate to throw split shot at it while you ski by later. My son looked at me and said without being prompted by me " well it would be a shame if we slammed our MasterCraft into your piece of crap, cause I bet either one of you tools know how to swim". It was perfect, my son was ready to kick the crap out of them.
I think they believed him, which is wise.;)

epnault

06-26-2012, 03:17 PM

This jogs my memory of the first season I had my MasterCraft (summer of 2010). My parents live on a very unique chain of 9 lakes in North Eastern WI and the residents/cabin owners are super pro watersports to the point that some of the channels are not techinicall legal to have a wake but their association over ruled it. Literally on the 4th holiday there will be people motoring through channels maybe only 50ft apart and to this day there have been no major accidents.

Now, back on topic. There are people that like to fish in the mornings, more power to them. So I have only shared this video with a couple people and to be honest this is the first video I have every uploaded to Youtube. The setting was, my mother and sister wanted to have coffee and put around the lake at 5:30 in the morning. We did this but after a while I kept looking at the lake and saying I need to ski. Now, my mother can drive a boat and has for many reason but there are varying definitions on "driving" but I didn't care at that point and asked her to pull me. This is the piece of my run that is in the video.

http://youtu.be/JzzPRV4G0sw

Beleive it or not I saw the guy at the bar that night and he bought me a drink and apologized for anchoring in the channel. Funny stuff.

onejdgreen

06-26-2012, 03:35 PM

I have not had any run ins with fisherman. I give them room, they give me room. My problem has been with other morons and jetskis. Jetskis seem to "babysitters" for kids that don't know the rules/laws of the lake or the fact that boats and jetskis dont have brakes. The majority of accidents caused on lakes involve them...

gatorguy

06-26-2012, 03:39 PM

My son looked at me and said without being prompted by me " well it would be a shame if we slammed our MasterCraft into your piece of crap, cause I bet either one of you tools know how to swim". It was perfect, my son was ready to kick the crap out of them.
I think they believed him, which is wise.;)

I don't laugh audibly at work very often, but I was bust'en up when I read that. Awesome!

snork

06-26-2012, 03:50 PM

epnault, that was close. Rule of thumb, if the fishermen can't cast a lure into my boat its far enough away

scott023

06-26-2012, 04:00 PM

This jogs my memory of the first season I had my MasterCraft (summer of 2010). My parents live on a very unique chain of 9 lakes in North Eastern WI and the residents/cabin owners are super pro watersports to the point that some of the channels are not techinicall legal to have a wake but their association over ruled it. Literally on the 4th holiday there will be people motoring through channels maybe only 50ft apart and to this day there have been no major accidents.

Now, back on topic. There are people that like to fish in the mornings, more power to them. So I have only shared this video with a couple people and to be honest this is the first video I have every uploaded to Youtube. The setting was, my mother and sister wanted to have coffee and put around the lake at 5:30 in the morning. We did this but after a while I kept looking at the lake and saying I need to ski. Now, my mother can drive a boat and has for many reason but there are varying definitions on "driving" but I didn't care at that point and asked her to pull me. This is the piece of my run that is in the video.

http://youtu.be/JzzPRV4G0sw

Beleive it or not I saw the guy at the bar that night and he bought me a drink and apologized for anchoring in the channel. Funny stuff.

That was funny as heck.

scott023

06-26-2012, 04:00 PM

I don't laugh audibly at work very often, but I was bust'en up when I read that. Awesome!

You and me both. That was a get comeback.

02ProstarSammyD

06-26-2012, 04:06 PM

This is the piece of my run that is in the video.

I bet he was sporting a brown pants special on that one

thekubiaks

06-26-2012, 06:41 PM

Funny thing is, i wave at almost everyone i pass, in my boat alot of the fisherman will just stare at me and not wave, if i'm out on my dad's Crestliner a half hour later, i'll drive by the same guys and they will wave at me..... Funny observation.

Thanks for all of the comments....I am beginning to conclude that it is the rollers we create with our boats that piss off the fishermen. My previous boat was a 22 ft. Maxum and we never had an issue.

I guess one kind of funny thing the other day was we were surfing and making a huge wake, one of these fisherman came by doing at least 80. He hit my wake and launched, I literally saw the bottom of his prop 2 feet above the water, I wish I had my camera, Evil Knievel would have been proud. I'm surprised he didn't blow his motor or become a U-Boat commander going nose first into the water!!

snork

06-26-2012, 08:32 PM

serves them right, blow'n their motor and submarine the boat

imracin68j

06-26-2012, 09:07 PM

When I was about 17 my buddies dad had gotten a new boat and he was teaching him how to drive. My buddy "obliviously" got me within striking range of these 2 people in an aluminum boat. I cut deep and laid a perfect fan of lake water over their boat. I could almost see a rainbow is was so perfect. My buddies dad stopped the boat and made me go and say I was sorry. I told them it was an accident. lol

AZX9

06-26-2012, 10:57 PM

I feel fairly lucky. Where I boat its mostly recreational boating. I've not had any problems with the fishermen because there aren't many and I try to stay away and respect their fishing spot if they were there first. The people that piss me off are the ones that have no idea how to operate an IB/OB and like to cruise around at 15 mph with the trim up about half way because they don't know how or why to use it. They have the nose straight in the air and are pushing a tsunami. I am usually floating down the river hanging out on the platform when they roll by believing they are doing me a favor by going slow. Every time they just about swamp my boat. I would rather them fly by at high speed than pushing huge rollers. Many people would freak out at how close boats fly by at close proximity here on the Colorado River and lakes. Tons high performance 30-40'ers and oldschool jetboats. I'm used to it and have no issue with close passes as long as your hauling.

rhsprostar

06-26-2012, 11:31 PM

I wonder if the jetskiers and tubers are asking the same questions about us?:rolleyes:
The fisherman complain about us, we complain about the tubers and jetskis , so who do the jetskiers complain about......the canoes and kayaks? :D

AZX9

06-26-2012, 11:34 PM

I know the jetskis love us. Like flies on schiznit.

vanellies

06-27-2012, 10:55 AM

Greetings all,

I will try not to blow this totally out of proportion and yes Fishermen and women can get very obnoxious out there. When someone follows someone to the ramp to just give someone the bird is ridiculous.

In the defense of us fishing people though. When someone cruises by in casting range at 30-40mph, which you know happens a lot out there. Of course you will get a concerned or angry look from us, because I donít know if you are going to run my butt over or not. If you donít think that impacts fishing then you really have to get your head out of LALA land. Iím not saying that everyone who owns a pleasure boat does this, but from my experiences 90% of you do it to us.

The reason why you hear the bass boats cruising to at WOT to a specific spot is not because were worried that the fish will be gone. The reason is when you fish in tournaments it is first come first catch out there. You have to beat your competitors out to your favorite fishing spots a lot of the time.

Also most tournament fishermen are season veterans on the water and are wearing PFDís and also have the kill switch lanyard attached to them when the big motor is running.

How many of you have the kill switch attached to you when you are at cruising speed? 1 or 2 out of 50 maybe?

What Iím getting at is. Most fishermen have a lot more hours behind the wheel then a lot of pleasure boaters do. You noticed I said most and not all.

An example would be the other day I was fishing some submerged pilings probably 800yards away from the channel. The pilings are marked with a big sign sticking 10 feet out of the water saying ďDANGER submerged pilings.Ē I was looking at my graph when happened to look up and I see a 20ft bow rider with 5 people in it cruising at WOT 20yards from me. Of course none of them had a PFD on. At this particular time I wasnít even worried about them disrupting my fishing. I was worried about them hitting one of those pilings and everyone getting ejected out of the boat. Then having their boat go out of control and running me over, because you know the driver didnít have there kill switch lanyard attached to them.

Lastly there is no way that you guys can load your bow rider or wake boarding boats faster then us. What a CROCK! It takes me all of 5 minutes to put my bass boat on the trailer when Iím by myself. I have had people at the ramp say damn you can load your boat fast!

Iím no saying fishermen arenít perfect either. There are donkyís on both sides of the spectrum of boating.

Just be safe out there and good boating.

mzimme

06-27-2012, 11:07 AM

Greetings all,

I will try not to blow this totally out of proportion and yes Fishermen and women can get very obnoxious out there. When someone follows someone to the ramp to just give someone the bird is ridiculous.

In the defense of us fishing people though. When someone cruises by in casting range at 30-40mph, which you know happens a lot out there. Of course you will get a concerned or angry look from us, because I don’t know if you are going to run my butt over or not. If you don’t think that impacts fishing then you really have to get your head out of LALA land. I’m not saying that everyone who owns a pleasure boat does this, but from my experiences 90% of you do it to us.

The reason why you hear the bass boats cruising to at WOT to a specific spot is not because were worried that the fish will be gone. The reason is when you fish in tournaments it is first come first catch out there. You have to beat your competitors out to your favorite fishing spots a lot of the time.

Also most tournament fishermen are season veterans on the water and are wearing PFD’s and also have the kill switch lanyard attached to them when the big motor is running.

How many of you have the kill switch attached to you when you are at cruising speed? 1 or 2 out of 50 maybe?

What I’m getting at is. Most fishermen have a lot more hours behind the wheel then a lot of pleasure boaters do. You noticed I said most and not all.

An example would be the other day I was fishing some submerged pilings probably 800yards away from the channel. The pilings are marked with a big sign sticking 10 feet out of the water saying “DANGER submerged pilings.” I was looking at my graph when happened to look up and I see a 20ft bow rider with 5 people in it cruising at WOT 20yards from me. Of course none of them had a PFD on. At this particular time I wasn’t even worried about them disrupting my fishing. I was worried about them hitting one of those pilings and everyone getting ejected out of the boat. Then having their boat go out of control and running me over, because you know the driver didn’t have there kill switch lanyard attached to them.

Lastly there is no way that you guys can load your bow rider or wake boarding boats faster then us. What a CROCK! It takes me all of 5 minutes to put my bass boat on the trailer when I’m by myself. I have had people at the ramp say damn you can load your boat fast!

I’m no saying fishermen aren’t perfect either. There are donky’s on both sides of the spectrum of boating.

Just be safe out there and good boating.

This should be fun...

To counter your more specific points -

First - Who said anything about women being obnoxious?

Second - If you don't want people running by you at 30-40 yards away I suggest another spot. Anytime I ever run anywhere close to that distance from a fishing boat is when they come into the water AFTER I've already been running up and down a specific section of calm water and they decide it's the place they want to fish. Sorry, go fish elsewhere if you don't want a boat running close to you.

Third - Every boat on the water does not have a lanyard, so that argument is silly anyways. If our boats could actually move at 80mph like some bass boats, I'm sure they all would have a lanyard as well.

Fourth - Stupid people will always be stupid if they can't stay away from hazards. You'll find that people in the more specific purpose built boats tend to be more aware of what's around them on the lake. It's the 16 ft tri-hulls with an overloaded bow that you'll watch run through hazards, not the guy in his 120k+ dollar boat looking for calm water to get a tow in.

Fifth - Yes, we very well can load our boats faster than you. We have drive on, drive off trailers too, and generally the way they're designed, your NOT supposed to even use the winch. Oh, and you'll never see us drag our "big motors" across the ramp pavement either. ;)

I do respect your attempt to come in here and explain why fishermen still own the lake, although it was an ill attempt at best.

mzimme

06-27-2012, 11:15 AM

I'd also like to hear what reasoning you can come up with that makes running across a lake 3-10 boats wide at WOT "to get to your spot" any safer than running 22mph 30-40 yards away from other boats.

I'd also be interested in knowing where you found this thread, seeing as you registered just to post what you did.

I'd also contest that you think most fisherman have more hours behind the wheel. I'd beg to differ. How many hours are on YOUR boat? I'll bet you can steer with your foot real well though!

Lumbergh

06-27-2012, 11:38 AM

Seriously, post one and this comes out? Doesn't Bass Pro Shop have some forum to pollute?

We have the same problem with the fishermen at our lake feeling like they own the lake. Despite my efforts to give them plenty of room despite them anchoring right in the middle of the smooth water they routinely flip us off. I have even had them yell at us from their dock. I have found that the best way to deal with them is to just ignore them. It is a public lake and I have just as much right to be on it as them (I figure more so since I own property on the lake and they are mostly drop in for the day types). I just act like they don't exist and if I don't see "the bird" it doesn't bug me and it probably disappoints them that they are not getting a reaction to their rude, redneck behavior.

I'd also like to hear what reasoning you can come up with that makes running across a lake 3-10 boats wide at WOT "to get to your spot" any safer than running 22mph 30-40 yards away from other boats.

I'd also be interested in knowing where you found this thread, seeing as you registered just to post what you did.

I'd also contest that you think most fisherman have more hours behind the wheel. I'd beg to differ. How many hours are on YOUR boat?

First: Isn't It the law that you have to have a lanyard and kill switch on your boats. I know in most states it is. It is your decision if you want to use them.

Second: My boat trailer is a bunk trailer, so I don't have to latch it when loading.
I just drive it on and pull it out of the water.

Third: If someone is anchored or swimming I never go by them, It's just common sense. Regarding fishing or boating in calm water nobody owns the water, so you have to share it.

Fourth: I had a friend send me this post he has a pleasure cruising boat, so I thought it was comical that you guys think your perfect out there.

Fifth: I have operated boats for IDK long time since I have always been an avid fishermen.
Hours on my boat I think there is around 200 hours on a replacement power head.

Anyways I didn't mean to offend anyone. Opinions vary!

I liked the comment about how you don't see women giving you the bird.

Be safe out there.

Flame on!

Specter

06-27-2012, 11:57 AM

The passing distance part is the most subjective piece of this. I'll pass as far away as I can if I have room but if a fisherman leaves me little room I normally slow down to 20mph or less for everyone's safety. Of course, my slow speed is most likely interpreted by fisherman as a means to cause a bigger wake. Just last night we were leaving the marina to find our favorite riding spot when a fishing boat decided to take up the main entry/exit point of the bridge we have to pass through to leave the marina. I slowed down enough to toss up a nice roller as a token of my appreciation and took the next bridge exit to the right of him. He gave me the hang-ten hand signal so maybe he's a surfer at heart?

vanellies

06-27-2012, 12:02 PM

Oh I'm sorry Lumbergh!

Why do people post things up on forums? Oh maybe its for discussion purposes?

If you read my post I wasn't bashing anybody I was just stating my experiences out on the water.

Instead of just throwing up a stupid picture. You could of actually commented or made an actual stated an actual argument on why you agree or disagree with me.

vanellies

06-27-2012, 12:06 PM

The passing distance part is the most subjective piece of this. I'll pass as far away as I can if I have room but if a fisherman leaves me little room I normally slow down to 20mph or less for everyone's safety. Of course, my slow speed is most likely interpreted by fisherman as a means to cause a bigger wake. Just last night we were leaving the marina to find our favorite riding spot when a fishing boat decided to take up the main entry/exit point of the bridge we have to pass through to leave the marina. I slowed down enough to toss up a nice roller as a token of my appreciation and took the next bridge exit to the right of him. He gave me the hang-ten hand signal so maybe he's a surfer at heart?

Specter,

I can respect that! They shouldn't be sitting in the middle of the channel or blocking underpasses! I would do the same thing that you did. It's just common courtesy.

Like I said before there are a lot of donkeys out there on both sides.

02ProstarSammyD

06-27-2012, 12:53 PM

Greetings all,

I will try not to blow this totally out of proportion and yes Fishermen and women can get very obnoxious out there. When someone follows someone to the ramp to just give someone the bird is ridiculous.
Best driver on my boat besides me is a woman. She handles her chit.

In the defense of us fishing people though. When someone cruises by in casting range at 30-40mph, which you know happens a lot out there. Of course you will get a concerned or angry look from us, because I donít know if you are going to run my butt over or not. If you donít think that impacts fishing then you really have to get your head out of LALA land. Iím not saying that everyone who owns a pleasure boat does this, but from my experiences 90% of you do it to us.

I'll agree with this. Happens to us too with downed riders. None of us like someone who gets too close.

The reason why you hear the bass boats cruising to at WOT to a specific spot is not because were worried that the fish will be gone. The reason is when you fish in tournaments it is first come first catch out there. You have to beat your competitors out to your favorite fishing spots a lot of the time.

I understand the principle......doesn't make it any safer

Also most tournament fishermen are season veterans on the water and are wearing PFDís and also have the kill switch lanyard attached to them when the big motor is running.

How many of you have the kill switch attached to you when you are at cruising speed? 1 or 2 out of 50 maybe?

If that. If a boat hits something hard enough to throw me out the lanyard is probably gonna pop off anyways.
How would I ghost ride with a lanyard. Obviously it wouldn't work [/sarcasm]

What Iím getting at is. Most fishermen have a lot more hours behind the wheel then a lot of pleasure boaters do. You noticed I said most and not all.

No doubt. Lot of new guys on the water. Most (I said most not all) are not driving mastercrafts. They aren't a traditional first boat imho

An example would be the other day I was fishing some submerged pilings probably 800yards away from the channel. The pilings are marked with a big sign sticking 10 feet out of the water saying ďDANGER submerged pilings.Ē I was looking at my graph when happened to look up and I see a 20ft bow rider with 5 people in it cruising at WOT 20yards from me. Of course none of them had a PFD on. At this particular time I wasnít even worried about them disrupting my fishing. I was worried about them hitting one of those pilings and everyone getting ejected out of the boat. Then having their boat go out of control and running me over, because you know the driver didnít have there kill switch lanyard attached to them.

Guilty. I never wear a pfd in the boat

Lastly there is no way that you guys can load your bow rider or wake boarding boats faster then us. What a CROCK! It takes me all of 5 minutes to put my bass boat on the trailer when Iím by myself. I have had people at the ramp say damn you can load your boat fast!

I smoke almost everyone at the launch in/out. And the best part is I never go alone so I don't have to worry about it. From when my tires touch the water I'm never over 2 minutes from pulling out. I don't know who brought up the loading but theres a wally for every group that can't load/launch. I do however see a ton more fishing boats clogging up the docks waiting for the driver to get done parking
Iím no saying fishermen arenít perfect either. There are donkyís on both sides of the spectrum of boating.
Agreed 100%. I had a jackleg in a MC toss my cookies 2 weeks ago while I was working on the boat in a cove. Sent my hand into the pulley and jacked me up pretty good. All of us the problem children. I just don't get why we get more dirty looks than the guys out in a crappy caravelle that has no idea what hes doing. PS most guys in Malibus are jerks too. You can pass that along

Just be safe out there and good boating.
Ditto. Now can we all hug it out?

The biggest wally I have seen on our lake this year is unfortunately the owner of a Maristar.
He's got a board rack and nice boards on it, but the only thing I have seen the the guy do for the last 3 weekends is figure 8's with a tube behind him. Driving like a maniac wally.

As for fishermen, I try to give them as much space as possible. I don't know where their lines are and I sure as h*ll don't want to find out the hard way. I have an aversion to embedded fish hooks.....(I'm sure its an odd phobia that nobody else has) So I try to stay beyond what I would consider their casting distance.

I would expect that everyone understands (maybe thats a reach) that its a public lake and no one person owns the water they are on, so everyone needs to be as courteous as possible.

Problem on our lake is that there are submerged Islands. So, we have Fishing boats anchored in the middle of the lake, with boats running on both sides of them. These guys are getting it from both sides. Pontoons, toobers, skiers, boarders, surfers, runabouts.......all running by these guys. So if they are going to flip anyone off, they will spend more time doing that than actually fishing.

^ i knocked mine off one time also lol.... it took about 1 minute to figure that out ..... thought it was the fuel pump again.... ;(

ShawnB

06-28-2012, 12:40 PM

My lake is on the small side (75 acres) and has a defined traffic pattern that all boats have to follow under power. Every damn Sunday morning there's someone trolling right through the channel, completely oblivious. If it were an option to wakeboard somewhere else I would but I'm following the rules. They could go to any number of places I'm not allowed to drive and fish.

Years ago I tried chatting guys up when they did it but something about boarding a boat, cracking a beer, and lighting a cigar really makes people unreasonable. I'm sure if I saw these guys off the water they'd be the nicest guys but on the water they suck.

I wonder if they were to hunt in the middle of the highway, would they get mad at all the damn cars driving by?

Kyle

06-28-2012, 01:44 PM

I have had real bad experiences with fishermen. I just leave them alone and stay away from them for their safety.

(Situation 1)

I was skiing on a private site and I have always thought that it was never a big deal for fishermen to fish the shore (standing on bank) while I ski. I was always under the impression that they may have had a bad day and they are just blowing off steam so just let them be. One day a guy casted his line at me in our turn around and it wrapped around the handle 5' section and that set me off. I instantly skied to shore ripped off my ski and ran after this a$$hole on a gravel road and cought him from behind. I then continued to drag his ars down into the water and where I have a life vest on and he did not. When the fear finally registered in his tiny brain, I asked how does it feel to be helpless can't do anything to defend yourself. He was very apologetic for intentionally casting at me. I then asked what he would do if his lure would have cought my face, eye, skin etc. He gathered his gear and left and had a wet ride home unharmed.

(situation 2)

I had this guy all in camo fishing at the boat ramp and he had a pellet gun beside him. He would shoot the single shot pellet rifle into the water trying to skip the pellets. I asked him politely to leave and that he was trespassing. He packs up without saying a word and heads to his car. Once he gets to his car he gets a pistol and walks back to me. At 25' away I am like Holy Chit. The guy continues to get closer and I'm thinking this is bad. I am not close enough to know what kind of gun it is but all I know is that it is a black pistol pointed at me. The man is irate and out of control at this time and I am trying to walk slowly backwards to my truck to get my pistol. As I got near my truck he points the gun at my friend who is trying to reason with him. I open the door to my truck and grabbed a 9mm 15+1 that was ready to roll. The guy not noticing Me at all fires the pistol above my buddy to let us know he he ment business. At that point I told him to get on the ground while using my door of my truck as a shield. He looks at me and notices he has a real gun pointed at him and runs off. We took down his license plate and called the police. I really wish he would have Layed down. The out come of inflicting fear into a man would have been extremely fun.

Now my buddy was messed up for a while after that and was really scared. I on the other hand just tried to remain calm and really take a real good outlook at the situation and have a clear head vs just taking a mans life. Yes I was scared but it was a scared of I've never been shot and didnt know how it would feel. I was not fear of dieing.

So now I ignore fishermen and the only way I would ever lend a hand to one is if their boat was on fire in the middle of the lake and they were swimming. If they had engine trouble or boat ramp trouble then tough chit. Most fishermen think they own the lake and that is a real good example why I ski during the day while people are at work.

onewheat

06-28-2012, 02:44 PM

I have had real bad experiences with fishermen. I just leave them alone and stay away from them for their safety.

(situation 2)

As I got near my truck he points the gun at my friend who is trying to reason with him. I open the door to my truck and grabbed a 9mm 15+1 that was ready to roll. The guy not noticing Me at all fires the pistol above my buddy to let us know he he ment business

At that point, I feel like I would be protecting my friend's life (as if it were my own) and I would have unloaded into that guy. F him! Since he already fired shots - I would have dropped him in a heartbeat.

LYNRDSKYNRD

06-28-2012, 02:55 PM

I've actually been towed in by a fisherman. He was active duty army and had just returned from overseas that day. He said first thing he did was go to the lake to fish. My coil went out and we were floating in the middle of the lake he was nice enough to give me and my kids a pull back to the dock. I gave him a 20 for his trouble which he tried to refuse but told him it was the least I could do.

I had this guy all in camo fishing at the boat ramp and he had a pellet gun beside him. He would shoot the single shot pellet rifle into the water trying to skip the pellets. I asked him politely to leave and that he was trespassing. He packs up without saying a word and heads to his car. Once he gets to his car he gets a pistol and walks back to me. At 25' away I am like Holy Chit. The guy continues to get closer and I'm thinking this is bad. I am not close enough to know what kind of gun it is but all I know is that it is a black pistol pointed at me. The man is irate and out of control at this time and I am trying to walk slowly backwards to my truck to get my pistol. As I got near my truck he points the gun at my friend who is trying to reason with him. I open the door to my truck and grabbed a 9mm 15+1 that was ready to roll. The guy not noticing Me at all fires the pistol above my buddy to let us know he he ment business. At that point I told him to get on the ground while using my door of my truck as a shield. He looks at me and notices he has a real gun pointed at him and runs off. We took down his license plate and called the police. I really wish he would have Layed down. The out come of inflicting fear into a man would have been extremely fun.

Now my buddy was messed up for a while after that and was really scared. I on the other hand just tried to remain calm and really take a real good outlook at the situation and have a clear head vs just taking a mans life. Yes I was scared but it was a scared of I've never been shot and didnt know how it would feel. I was not fear of dieing.

So now I ignore fishermen and the only way I would ever lend a hand to one is if their boat was on fire in the middle of the lake and they were swimming. If they had engine trouble or boat ramp trouble then tough chit. Most fishermen think they own the lake and that is a real good example why I ski during the day while people are at work.

In Texas you would have been correct in laying his A $$ out. That's a good example of why I have a CHL and always carry in my car...........

PM me what lake you were on. I am curious as we boat near one another.....

h2oskifreak

06-28-2012, 07:43 PM

My lake is private with 1 ski member (Me) plus the lake owner (a skier too) with 10 fishing members. It's amazing how I can be there skiing the course (for an hour before they arrive) and they will start fishing along the course. What's wrong with the other side of the lake? I don't stop. When I come around the bouy, I'm sure they are in the "spay zone", hopefully out of the "come apart at the seams zone". I figure if they get wet, they will get the point. My driver says "what do you want to do?. My answer..."Give them hell". I'm not a rude guy, just respect my space and the fact I was there first.

clrussell

03-21-2013, 10:39 PM

Wow just read the whole thread.. I've not had much problems with fishermen, I give them space, and they seem to do the same. Only had my boat for about 1:4 summer so far so we will see about this year.

Tapatalk

lakeoz tristar

03-21-2013, 11:37 PM

I don't have a problem with the fishers on the water until... They come in all slow near the docks to fish in the calm water..Cast their lines at the dock, on the dock into the lifts etc etc (bad AIM I guess) them have to fire up right next to the dock leave like a bat outta hell..But they came in nice and calm??? I have gone to the dock found hooks,lures line all the time. Two summers ago I got a sun shade for my dock http://loz.craigslist.org/boa/3647325211.html from this guy to cover one of my boat slips and I swear it says "cast your line here" on it somewhere.. F-Tards... Luckily no damage to it yet..

Guess on the flip side I do collect some free lures..:D

kalamalka

03-22-2013, 12:04 AM

I feel for the fishermen on our lakes around here. I'd say 90% are good guys, usually older guys who've been fishing here long before wakeboarding ect. I see the problem being the teenage kids of rich tourists not caring about anyone else on the lake. Its giving us all locally a bad rep.

Aric'sX15

03-22-2013, 12:33 AM

Greetings all,

I will try not to blow this totally out of proportion and yes Fishermen and women can get very obnoxious out there. When someone follows someone to the ramp to just give someone the bird is ridiculous.

In the defense of us fishing people though. When someone cruises by in casting range at 30-40mph, which you know happens a lot out there. Of course you will get a concerned or angry look from us, because I donít know if you are going to run my butt over or not. If you donít think that impacts fishing then you really have to get your head out of LALA land. Iím not saying that everyone who owns a pleasure boat does this, but from my experiences 90% of you do it to us.

The reason why you hear the bass boats cruising to at WOT to a specific spot is not because were worried that the fish will be gone. The reason is when you fish in tournaments it is first come first catch out there. You have to beat your competitors out to your favorite fishing spots a lot of the time.

Also most tournament fishermen are season veterans on the water and are wearing PFDís and also have the kill switch lanyard attached to them when the big motor is running.

How many of you have the kill switch attached to you when you are at cruising speed? 1 or 2 out of 50 maybe?

What Iím getting at is. Most fishermen have a lot more hours behind the wheel then a lot of pleasure boaters do. You noticed I said most and not all.

An example would be the other day I was fishing some submerged pilings probably 800yards away from the channel. The pilings are marked with a big sign sticking 10 feet out of the water saying ďDANGER submerged pilings.Ē I was looking at my graph when happened to look up and I see a 20ft bow rider with 5 people in it cruising at WOT 20yards from me. Of course none of them had a PFD on. At this particular time I wasnít even worried about them disrupting my fishing. I was worried about them hitting one of those pilings and everyone getting ejected out of the boat. Then having their boat go out of control and running me over, because you know the driver didnít have there kill switch lanyard attached to them.

Lastly there is no way that you guys can load your bow rider or wake boarding boats faster then us. What a CROCK! It takes me all of 5 minutes to put my bass boat on the trailer when Iím by myself. I have had people at the ramp say damn you can load your boat fast!

Iím no saying fishermen arenít perfect either. There are donkyís on both sides of the spectrum of boating.

Just be safe out there and good boating.

First off, its not the law to wear your pfd in the boat unless youre under 13 in TX. I can load my boat in 5 minutes too, you ever heard of a boat buddy? pull up, click, drive off. Its not your lake, and people can drive wherever they want. when i see people driving through submerged trees on my lake i could care less. its their fault for not being observant. Next time some moronic fishermen drives by me going 60mph 10 feet off my bow im going to follow them and lecture them exactly how you just did to us. Have you noticed how much freeboard ski/wakeboard boats have them fishing boats? thats why I dont wear my PFD while driving a boat that will barely break 36 mph? Not necessary. People like you make me want to swamp every fishing boat I see. you come across to me as a fishing boat elitist.

GoneBoatN

03-22-2013, 01:15 AM

... fishing boat elitist ...

Kind of an oxymoron right there! :D Nothing against fishermen, just my observation that they tend not to think of themselves as elite. Ok, maybe some of the ones that pay mega $ to go ocean fishing, but not the ones puttering around the lakes and rivers.

Aric'sX15

03-22-2013, 02:05 AM

I was just speaking for the ones that think they're the only ones aloud on the lake! haha. not the ones that mind their own business and don't know it all.

76S&S

03-22-2013, 09:10 AM

I fish, ski, wakeboard, foot, cruise......you get the idea, I just love being out on the water. I generally find that a little courtesy goes along way, regardless of which boat I'm in. If I'm in the MC and idle past some fishermen before dropping my rider in, they will usually pay me the same respect when it's time for them to jet off to the next spot.

There are bad drivers on both sides of the fence. I witnessed a friend drive his wake boat up a narrow area of the lake where he was no more than 20 feet from shore. Now this guy runs 4 - 5,000 lbs of ballast in his boat. There was a homeowner trying to keep his pontoon from beating up against his pier, my friend screams "that is what bumpers are for". People like him aren't doing the wake crowd any favors.

I also had a fisherman come screaming into our slough at 50+ mph. I flagged him down as he was coming out and informed him that I have kids that swim there daily and was relieved that they weren't in the water when he came in. I did this nicely and he said it wouldn't happen again.

Courtesy works most of the time but not all, as we know. There are sometimes situations that need "special" attention.

Did that in my new boat last week....only took me 2 minutes for the light to go off in my head and fix it though...LOL:D

LittleFuss

03-22-2013, 09:34 AM

I ski and wake mostly on the Red River waterway in and around Alexandria, LA...there are plenty of fishermen around most of the time. I have not had many problems with them, so I guess mine are nice or I am just lucky. On occasion I have been skiing and one will pull up and start fishing where we are making our turns. Only one has gotten mad.

My problem is when cruisers pick a spot where I plan on skiing. They could go just about anywhere on the 25 mile stretch of river and lounge, I dont have a problem throwing a wake and getting rid of them. My main aggravation is reserved for jet skis and idiots driving I/O's that get way too close for my comfort. I have no idea why they get so close and then wave at me like we are friends of something. My other ire is reserved for retards at the launch loading their boat for 20 minutes while sitting on the ramp. The launch I most often use has a 2 acre parking lot for that kind of crap...And they look at me funny when I pull up turn off the truck and stare at them with arms crossed....

A lot of people in my experience by the cruisers with no boating experience or effort to learn and think there are no rules or are oblivious to them. Case in point while test driving my recent MC purchase in Georgia I was pulling up to the dock where my salesman was waiting while edged up next to the mooring cleats. While coming to and putting the dock on the starboard side both the salesman and his brother threw both fists in the air and said, "HELL YEAH!". Shocked, I asked what I had done. They replied, you know how to drive a boat....I guess they come into contact with these same people....

CCAnderson

03-22-2013, 09:55 AM

I have a favorite spot of the river and I have been going there pretty much every weekend for the last three years. Every time we pull in the fishermen get pissed and leave. Even when they stay I have yet to see them pull out anything so I'm wondering why they are they in the first place?

What really slays me is there is only one safe way to get into this back water and that is from the downstream side. Every experienced river boater should know the wing dams are always on the upstream side. This particular back slough has two nasty wing dams on the up upstream end that should not be crossed under power. One of them runs parallel to the current and doesn't give off the tell tale ripple on the surface. Every time we put the boom on it guarantees the pontoons and I/Os will show up and they always come in from upstream and under power. I like the attention, i think there are only a handful of barefooters in out pool but why there? the slough is a half mile long and the river is 16 miles between locks.

I keep waiting for them to rip the lower unit out of the hull. None yet but it will happen eventually. I just hope thy don't ask me to tow their sinking Crownline

Ironhorse

03-22-2013, 10:07 AM

I dont fish, but lots of friends do. Being a fisherman doesnt make you a jerk, you were probably a jerk before you fished. The same goes for all walks of life. I do however encounter what I consider to be dumbest fisherman on the planet every summer. Our ski course is in a bay just around the corner from our lake house. I ski at around 7:00 when I know there is flat water and most of my skiing is done on the weekends. At least twice every summer I see the same boat fishing in or next to the ski course. I spoke to him once and explained why this pattern of floating round balls is set up here and got the response "its not your lake ski somewhere else". Unfortunately these are the days I open water ski and then run up and down the course with no one behind the boat to create a pleasant fishing experience for said happy fisherman. Again the sport doesnt make a person a jerk, they were like that when they took it up.

gts-20

03-22-2013, 10:20 AM

Where we ski and board, we share the coves with a lot of fisherman, and we rarely have a problem. For the most part, the fisherman are more aware of boating courtesy than the wallys in the i/o's doing donuts pulling tubes. As a matter of fact, when I owned a bass boat/glitter rocket, I was fishing in this same cove, right at the edge of a grass line near shore. I was almost run over by a green Bu Wakesetter full of idiots. They came within about 10 feet of me, pulling a wake boarder, throwing beer cans, and screaming at me saying "this is a skiing/boarding only cove, get the f%*k out!". Their wake swamped my 21 foot bass boat and almost threw me over board.

Nordicron

03-22-2013, 10:25 AM

Yuck, fisherman!!! And this is coming from a guy that owned a 18ft walleye boat for 10yrs and fished hundreds of hours a year before the wakeboard bug hit me! For the most part yes I think they hate us ski/board types and feel they own the lakes! On our lake it seems we are always trying to find the calm sides of the lake and inevitably they end up anchored right in the middle of a good line. They are to close to shore to cut through and so far out from shore that you need to change your line and weave around them. It really sucks I'm sure they all think why can't they go out in the middle and do that ski crap.

Last year when changing riders I had a fisherman come and circle my boat like 8 times going about 12mph I guess trying to throw a big wake my direction? I so wanted to follow this guy and show him what a real wake looked like but just waved at him and ignored the antics.

dvsone79

03-22-2013, 10:41 AM

I'm usually on the TN river when I ride, and I encounter fishermen regularly, but haven't really had a dangerous incident from any of them. Usually just dirty looks as I drive by, but I always give them a wide berth.

Tubers and boat fleas (jet skis), on the other hand, are usually the ones I'm worried about. The boat fleas like to jump the wake and follow too close, and the tubers are completely unpredictable. Not to mention they destroy the good water.

LittleFuss

03-22-2013, 11:32 AM

I am guilty of puling a tube on occassion. I will usually go down river to another oxbow away from my fellow boarders & skiers...I usually stop pulling it if I see another inboard...It's just embarrassing:(

JDJ_205

03-22-2013, 11:44 AM

I agree there are idiots in all types of boats.

It can be tough dealing with people who have a hard time respecting the lake in general.

I think the most difficult to deal with these days are the wave runners/jet skis....far too many people hop on them and cut boats off left / right.

drschemel

03-22-2013, 12:56 PM

If I'm passing a fisherman in a narrow part of the lake, I will usually make a broad turn to throw my wake away from them. The worst thing to do is slow down then speed up as you go past them as that will make a much bigger wake than if you just blow past. If I'm already set in a part of the lake and a fisherman comes in and starts casting, he is just SOL if he wants flat water! We don't seem to have a lot of conflict here in Northwest Arkansas. Plenty of redneck ski boats (bass boats with pylons) as most people both fish and enjoy water sports around here.

TxsRiverRat

03-22-2013, 01:08 PM

IMO, It is all in the approach. Come across as confrontational, you’ll get confrontational in return. I often preach this at my club meetings...

One of the common scenarios on our site is when we have fishermen moored to our ski jump. I approach them (idling) and very courteously let them know a few things:

1. We’re about to ski and that our boat path will be right by them, so we don’t want them to think we’re being jerks, but we lease the cove from the city, and boats not in the ski club are to remain on the other side of the lake

2. I usually politely ask they not moor, or park or bump up against our jump as it can lead to us having to spend money to repair it.

Another common scenario are the on shore fishermen who have illegally parked outside our gates, have crossed over those gates even though there are private property / no trespassing signs all over the barriers... They would also be ignoring the signs I placed on the shoreline. I again POLITELY approach them and let them know that 1 – they are illegally parked... 2 – they are on leased property... and 3 – if the authorities show up, they’ll get cited for parking, trespassing and no fishing license (if they do not have one)... Ticket fear usually runs them off.

Again, outside of Kyle’s scenario #2 (Kyle did not mention that I was actually shot at by the pellet gun) and one other where a fishermen blew up at me (unprovoked), it is all in the approach...

There are exceptions however, and that is what the police are for... Don’t take matters into your own hands, the results could be costly in so many ways.

MC

Kweisner

03-22-2013, 01:44 PM

Honestly, I have nothing against the fishermen in my area--plenty of room for everyone assuming we all behave. . . but thought some of you might enjoy this recent dialogue regarding bass boats and trailers.

After pulling our boat at a busy launch, one of my twin boys asked, "Are the fishing boats all glittery to help attract the fish?" I simply replied, "No it's not that. It's just that nothing says rugged outdoorsman like a boat dressed like a parade float."

gid

03-22-2013, 02:49 PM

Why do fishing boat have to go 80mph? There are fish everywhere!

DemolitionMan

03-22-2013, 04:23 PM

Why do fishing boat have to go 80mph? There are fish everywhere!

Because you may miss the weigh in.

FrankSchwab

03-22-2013, 04:54 PM

Watching on our lakes, the percentage of rude Inboard drivers is much higher than rude fishermen. A guy surfing with 3000 pounds of ballast 50' off your bow is far worse than a 1500 pound Bass boat. And I've had both shut down in front of me.

Frankly, the worst problem here is at the ramp when a Thunderstorm rolls in. You've got 100 people trying to get off the lake before the 60 mph winds hit, and the first three guys pull out and into the make-ready slots, essentially shutting down the ramp for everyone else (it's difficult, but not impossible, to get a trailer into the water straight without being able to pull forward into the make-ready lane). Guldarnit, there's a parking lot just to the right - pull your damn boat over there and get it ready to go home so other people can get off the lake. Watched one boat sink at the dock because of a backup caused by this. I've tried to reason with people (Inboard, I/O, Bass boat) about this, and boy do they have an entitlement complex about those slots.

dihrdskir

03-22-2013, 05:25 PM

Unfortunately there are wankers in all walks of life and whether you ski or board ,whatever, we are all tarred with the same brush thanks to the mindless few. It comes down to respect and a little common courtesy. We bump heads when someone puts themselves or the crew ahead of the enjoyment of others. If you want to surf with 5000 lbs of ballast and 16 crew blasting out 7000 jiggawatts of doof doof then fine, but do it somewhere where you will not ruin the day for someone who is out there for the peace and quiet and a little bit of flat water. :)

chriscraftmatt1976

04-16-2013, 12:59 PM

Unfortunately there are wankers in all walks of life and whether you ski or board ,whatever, we are all tarred with the same brush thanks to the mindless few. It comes down to respect and a little common courtesy. We bump heads when someone puts themselves or the crew ahead of the enjoyment of others. If you want to surf with 5000 lbs of ballast and 16 crew blasting out 7000 jiggawatts of doof doof then fine, but do it somewhere where you will not ruin the day for someone who is out there for the peace and quiet and a little bit of flat water. :)

I would tend to agree. fishermen rarely are an issue for me, but the ones that drive me nuts are the people out surfing at 6am to get calm water, like they need it to surf. it seems like wherever we go on the lake, they follow, roughing up the water. these mostly tend to be trunk slamming weekenders from chicago and detroit with more money than brains. I love to surf too, but how bout a liittle respect for the skiers, wakeboarders, and wakeskaters?! Surfing is somehting you do AFTER the water is too rough to take part in anything that involves skill...

jsta281

04-16-2013, 03:32 PM

Did not read the whole thread but basically fishermen want to fish where the ski water is the flattest so there will always be "issues." Just the way it is. We try and give a wide berth but at the end of the day there is no fix when two people want to occupy the "same spot" with different objectives. I'm the fishermen from time to time and I get annoyed even though I get what is going on. It is what it is.

timvan

04-17-2013, 06:35 AM

I was told by a b******* that we are to boat 500....yes 500 yards from his boat per state law, this was after cruising a good 50 yards away while being in the center of a channel. I told him the law actually states 100'...he then saluted me so I made sure to return the gesture with a wake that nearly sent him swimming.
I then told Mr. Allatoona to have a great day and I will do my best to enjoy his lake.

Mgboyd25

04-17-2013, 07:11 AM

I always resort to motorin over to the fishermen with my barbie fishing pole over my shoulder (andy griffith style) and proceede to talk about this big bass my buddy caught on the other end of the lake. Sometimes it creeps them out and makes them go away.... and sometimes I think they honesty try to find the honey hole i tell them about

but seriously I think they are so darn grumpy because they are so bored!